


Something about you

by FuckYeahChilton



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Abusive Father, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Crush at First Sight, Desus - Freeform, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt Daryl Dixon, Hurt/Comfort, JFD we need to decide a shipname, Jesyl, M/M, Pre-Apocalypse, Rick Ships It, caring paul rovia, darus - Freeform, jeryl, now and then
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-08
Updated: 2017-01-15
Packaged: 2018-09-15 19:20:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9252221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FuckYeahChilton/pseuds/FuckYeahChilton
Summary: Daryl and Rick brought Jesus to Alexandria. Rick is curious about the awkward way his friend reacted to the new guy and Daryl tells him a story about a guy named Paul he once fell in love with.





	1. Now

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!
> 
> This little story is inspired by a video I watched on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zifgsajPMO4 go check it out!! =)  
> I am also dying to know how Jesus was living before the apocalypse so combined with the thought how it would have been if Daryl and Paul had met in another life, I felt the urge to write about it =)
> 
> It's the first TWD story I ever published, I hope it is okay-ish written XD  
> Paul is in his late 20s and Daryl in his mid~late 30s in the past  
> This is also written just for fun =)
> 
> Enjoy and leave me a comment if you like =)

 

 

 

*** NOW *** 

 

 

 

 

“You can go. I’ll watch the door,” Daryl assured his friend and Rick nodded.

“Just tell me one more thing.”

“What?”

“What is it about that guy that makes him so special?”

“Special?”

“You're desperate to get rid of him but you don’t even know a thing about him. That doesn’t sound like you.”

“Just a feeling,” Daryl lied.

“Look, I don’t know what it is but I don’t think he’s a bad guy.”

“Maybe...”

“Then what is it?”

Daryl was lost in thoughts for a moment. Then admitted, “He reminds me of someone.”

“Wait… the guy you once told me about? The one you were in love with?”

“Yeah. I haven’t told you the whole story..”

“You actually haven’t told me anything except you being into guys and that there had been one who was special to you long time ago.”

“You wanna hear it now or what?”

“Sure. If you wanna share?”

Both men who were close like brothers for so long now sat down on the porch. Daryl took a deep breath and started, “It was a few years after my mom burned down our house in the mountains.. My dad, Merle and I, we moved closer to town, had a little crappy farmhouse and everything was hell and messed up and he drunk even more than ever after she died… Anyway, one night I was in town, on the way home from the grocery-store...”

 

 

*** 

 

 


	2. Then

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the actual first chapter =) Hope you like it and I apologize in advance for possible mistakes ^^;;;

 

 

 

***THEN***

 

 

 

Daryl Dixon was on the way home from the grocery-store, both hands full with plastic-bags, filled with a mix of junk-food and alcohol. He wasn’t even questioning anymore if he should pick something more healthy or if his dad had an alcohol-problem. He got used to this lifestyle, being the one going grocery-shopping while his dad was too drunk to get his ass off the couch and his brother too lazy to care if the fridge was full or not. It just had to be and no one asked who was taking care of it.

Lost in thoughts, Daryl didn’t see the guy who crossed his way, staring at his mobile-phone and with both not paying attention to anything outside of their own bubble, they bumped into each other, causing Daryl drop one of the bags.

“Fuck!” he cursed when he realized that a bottle broke and the liquid started spilling. “Can’t you watch your step, you prick?” he yelled while he tried to save the food.

“Can’t you watch your mouth?” the stranger countered and Daryl jumped up, grabbing him by the collar of his knitted cardigan.

“What you just said?” he hissed and stared into the smaller guy’s eyes, then he froze.

“Hey, I’m sorry okay?” the guy said, raising his arms in defense, “It was an accident.”

Daryl’s hand started shaking a little. Though he used to hate this kind of people, this guy was just too beautiful with his huge, bright eyes, that perfect little nose he planned to break and those lips, too perfect to split them open. He looked cute in his baggie-pants, mixed with a casual t-shirt under this stupid cardigan, his chin-long, dark-blond hair sticking out under a matching knitted slouch-beanie… He was small and skinny, definitely no danger for Daryl; it would feel like hitting a girl.  
Though he had never seen a girl with an equal pretty face... Only the three-day stubble reminded him that he kept awkwardly staring at a guy for an unknown amount of time now.

“Hey. Pancake. Are you going to punch me now or what?”

“What?”

“You’re staring at me.”

Daryl didn’t know what to say to his defense and released the stranger, uncomfortably shifting from one foot to another.

The guy exhaled with relief and smiled, “Again. I’m sorry. Are we good?”

“Hmh..”

The guy picked a pen from his pocket and grabbed Daryl’s wrist. “Sorry, I gotta run...” he said while he was writing something on Daryl’s arm. “Call me?” The guy winked with a cute smile and kept walking.

Daryl stared at the number and the heart drawn next to it for a while; then he looked after the guy. He was carrying a military-style backpack with a few patches on it; one of them was for gay-pride. 

Damn, that guy was hitting on him for real…

Not to know what to do with that information, Daryl kept walking as well, just leaving the dropped shopping-bag behind.  
His heart was beating fast and loud in his chest. What the hell was that?

Still confused as fuck, he took the bus back home, not even thinking of any consequences. He should have.

“Where’s the booze? That all?” Daryl’s father slurred while he was inspecting the bags, throwing the frozen food packs around. One hit Daryl painfully in the face.

“Dropped the bag on the way home,” Daryl murmured through gritted teeth while holding his forehead.

“You… you dropped the bag? You can’t even carry a fuckin’ bag?” his father yelled and pushed Daryl so hard that he fell and crouched on the ground immediately. He closed his eyes and tried to not feel the kicks, not hear the words that made him feel so small. He heard his father loosen his belt, followed by a sharp pain on his back.

And another.

And another.

***

  
Daryl wasn’t able to sleep that night. His whole body hurt, his eyes were swollen from tears. Every time he shifted, the wounds on his back ripped open again because the fabric of his tank top was sticking to the slowly drying blood.

He was so tired of this life, he just wanted it to be over. Looking around in the shit-hole of a room that he shared with his older brother who wasn’t here at the moment, he spotted a razor blade on the floor next to his shabby mattress and reached out for it. He could just end this all now…

Before Daryl could pick up the suicide supporting tool, the number on his arm caught his attention, bringing back the memory of the encounter that started all this trouble. He could have been mad at the guy, but all this wasn’t his fault. Daryl traced the heart with his fingertips and grabbed his mobile phone instead of the razor blade, typing in the number, saving it under ‘Prick’.

He hesitated for a long while, chewing on his lower lip, typing a message, deleting it, throwing his phone away, grabbing his phone again, typing something else, deleting it, being mad at himself, being mad at the guy. Repeated everything about three times, until he finally managed to send a text.

_-Hi.._

Daryl stared on his phone, his heart about to explode in his chest.

_-Who’s there?_

Daryl frowned, wondering how many other random guys got that dude’s number today.

_-Daryl_

_-Who’s Daryl?_

_-You bumped into me earlier_

_-We bumped into each other._

_-Maybe.._

_-I hoped it would be you. Hi Daryl. =) Wanna Skype?_

_-Nah.._

_-Aw. =( But you could keep staring at my face._

Daryl cracked a sad smile.

_-Shut up._

_-Okay, I admit it. I wanna see your face._

Daryl blinked away a tear. What the hell was he doing here? He was sitting here, texting with a guy who was so shamelessly hitting on him and it felt so damn good and he wanted to see his pretty face so badly but there was no way he could show his damaged face right now.

_-I ain’t good with talkin._ Daryl typed with shaky hands. 

_-My friends often say I talk too much. We’d be a good match. ;)_

Daryl was chewing on his fingernails for a while before he typed back.

_-What’s ur name?_

_-For you it’s Bae._

_-Seriously…_

_-I am serious. But you can also call me Paul._

Daryl couldn’t help it, this guy made him smile once more.

_-Hi Paul. Whatcha doin?_

_-On my bed, watching TV. It’s boring. U?_

_-Same._

_-Wanna come over?_

Daryl had no idea what to reply. There was no way he could actually do that now but he didn’t want Paul to think he didn’t want to either. Before he was able to decide what to write back, he got another text.

_-Okay. That sounded a bit desperate. I just...I really would like to see you again. ...And that sounded desperate as well._

_-Why?_

_-Reasons. So... date or date? =)_

_-It’s complicated..._

_-You’re not out yet?_

Daryl felt dizzy for a moment. He wouldn’t even admit to himself that he had never been interested in girls. He had never been with a guy either and every time he felt attracted to one, he ignored it. Daryl had no idea what was different now but something definitely was. This guy was different and he was able to make Daryl feel different but in a good way.

He took a shaky breath and typed:

_-Add that to the list._

_-I see. Okay. No pressure. How about we just hang out a bit, have a coffee...I talk, you listen until you get bored and want to punch me in the face.. =)_

Daryl choked back a laugh. He didn’t even hesitate anymore before he typed back.

_-Sounds good._

_-Great. Let me know when you’re ready. Until then, have something to stare at! #NoFilter_

With that text, he got a selfie that was so stupid it was almost adorable.

_-I already hate you so much.. #JustSayin_

_-No selfie for me? =(_

Daryl sighed and tried to take a selfie where his wounds weren’t visible. He had never done shit like this before, selfies... coffee.. It seemed all so stupid but right now it was exactly what he needed. A person who was nice to him, who even seemed to like him for whatever reason. Maybe he could show him a glimpse of a world he had never seen before.

He managed to take a selfie where only the good half of his face was visible and where he didn’t look too stupid and just sent it without message. At least one good thing from his old mobile phone that made so crappy quality photos that not every detail was visible, especially with bad light.

Just a few seconds later, his phone vibrated.

A call?

Daryl wasn’t sure if he was ready to talk to Paul but for some reason he picked up.

“Yeah?” he tried to keep his voice at the lowest, a bit angry at himself that it sounded cracked and thin.

“Daryl? ...Hey...”

Paul’s voice was so soft and full of worries, it made Daryl’s throat tighten.

“What’s up.” he managed to say anyway.

“All jokes aside... are you alright? You look... I don’t know... different.”

“Just tired.”

“You sure?”

Daryl teared up, he just couldn’t take it anymore. After all he had been through this evening, having someone actually caring about him was too much.

“No...” he confessed and tried to swallow it down but it was impossible.

“Tell me where you are, I come pick you up.”

“No! No... you can’t come here.”

“Then... what can I do?”

“Nothin’. You done enough already.”

“Because of the broken bottle?”

“No... not at all. ‘Cause you probably saved my life today...”

“Daryl... I have no idea what’s going on but please know that you can come over anytime, okay? I have a very comfortable couch to start with... I’ll text you my address later...”

“No. Tell me. I’ll remember it.”

Paul gave him his street and apartment number and Daryl repeated it three times.

“Got it. But don’t expect me to drop by... Like I said, complicated.”

“But you said you aren’t okay.”

“Look... I’ve never been okay, got it?”

There was a short moment of silence between the two men who had just met. “You never really planned to meet me, right?” Paul asked without sounding reproachful.

“Wrong. Just... gimme some time. Though I doubt it will be worth the wait.”

“It will. I’m super picky and I already picked you.”

“You have the worst taste.”

“I’m adventurous and I like challenges.”

“Is this a game for you?”

“No. Daryl. Believe it or not. I am honestly interested in getting to know you.”

“I wanna believe you... I guess... I really do.”

“Then do. I know you know nothing about me and usually I am not that aggressively hitting on strangers but..there’s something about you. I can’t explain.”

“No need to. I get it. I feel the same. Something like that never happened to me before but that’s why I’m sitting here talking to you now.”

“And you’re actually good at talking. You lied to me.”

Daryl laughed a little, “You make it easy for me.”

“To lie?”

“To talk. I mean... I like talkin’ to you... somehow.”

There was silence on the other side.

“Paul? Ya still there?”

Daryl looked at his screen, finding out that his mobile phone had died. “Shit...”

Daryl snuck out of his room, checking on his dad who was deep asleep on the couch. The living-room reeked of alcohol, sweat and puke, making Daryl feel sick.

“Fuck this..” he mumbled and grabbed the keys for his brother’s motorcycle. If he was lucky, no one would notice he was gone anyway.

 

 

***

 

 

Here's the selfie Daryl got.

 


	3. Now

 

 

 

*** NOW ***

 

 

 

“Wait... so you think that guy is actually your Paul?” Rick interrupted.

“No. I… I don’t know... He didn’t look like _Jesus_ back then. But there’s something about him. His eyes… I could never forget those eyes. His height would fit and his name is Paul but there are a lot of people with that name. Also he wasn’t the kind of guy surviving a Zombie-apocalypse. And if it is him, he would’ve recognized me, don’t ya think? He said Rovia. My Paul was Paul Monroe.”

“Yeah he also said _Jesus_ so who knows where that last name comes from. But that all still doesn’t answer my question why you wanna get rid of him. Wouldn’t it be great if he actually _is_ your guy? I never saw you interested in anyone... What I’m trying to say is... that I would be really happy for you. You deserve that.”

“No. You haven’t heard the whole story yet. If it is him... I... I could never face him ever again. Not after what happened.”

“Then tell me what happened.”

“I’m trying?”

“I’m listening.”

“So... that night, I dunno what hit me but I took Merle’s bike and drove to his place.”

 

 

***

 

 


	4. Then

 

 

 

*** THEN *** 

 

 

 

Daryl had parked the motorcycle a block away and walked the rest to the address Paul had given him. Now he was standing on front of a five floor apartment house. Paul had said 5th floor.

The front door was open and led into a foyer with two elevators.  
Without thinking much about it, he took one to the 5th floor and pushed the doorbell next to the name sign “Paul Monroe”. It took a moment until the door got opened and Paul appeared in the door frame, just wearing a pair of sweatpants and an open dressing-gown. 

“My... phone died.” Daryl said as a matter of fact, holding up his phone as proof and Paul looked up to him.

“Thank god,” he breathed out with relief and hugged Daryl without warning and without noticing his heavy injuries until he touched his back and Daryl flinched with a pained noise.

“Damn what happened to you? Come in… let me take a look at that,” he ordered kindly and pulled Daryl inside before he closed the door. Paul noticed the blood that was still soaking through the fabric of his tank top. “Who did that? Make yourself comfortable wherever you like, take your shirt off, I get the first-aid kit.”

“I didn’t mean to be a bother.” Daryl said but Paul shook his head. 

“You’re absolutely not. I’m glad that you’re here,” he assured with a smile and vanished into another room.

Daryl took the time to look around a bit. It was one of those open apartments, where everything was in one room. Bed, living space, cooking corner, there was a book-shelf at one side of the room, filled with books, the other side was littered with a mix of plain and painted canvases.

“What are you? An artist?” Daryl asked when Paul came back.

“Art-student. My dad owns this place so I can live here for free, fortunately. Come on, sit down.”

Daryl sat down on the couch. “You think you can live from selling paintings one day?”

“No idea. You like my paintings? Having an original Paul Monroe at your wall… Doesn’t that sound worth thousands of dollars?” Paul laughed.

“Dunno. Never thought ‘bout stuff like that.”

“Save it for later. Let me check on your wounds,” Paul said softly and helped Daryl to get rid of the tank top. “It might be better to go see a doctor. You might need stitches.”

“Nah, I’m good.”

“Then let me clean the wounds and patch them up so you won’t get an infection, okay?”

“Hmh..”

Daryl endured the procedure without complaining, not able to see that Paul was about to cry at the sight of brutality he had to suffer from earlier. He could only hear it by the way the tone of his voice had changed.

“You could stay here, you know...” he started while he was wrapping bandages around Daryl’s torso. “This place is big enough for two.”

“Nah, I can’t. You don’t know where I come from.”

“I can see that you come from a place that isn’t exactly good for your health. Just... think about it, will you?”

Daryl was quiet for a while before saying, “You barely know me.”

“So? People don’t know each other all the time until they do. You don’t know me either. I could be a psychopath, a cannibal planning to eat your legs, yet here you are.”

Daryl choked back a laugh. “Yeah, sure. Honestly... what do you see when you look at me?” he asked and turned around to face the other man.

“What do you see when you look into the mirror?” Paul returned the question.

“A worthless piece of shit?” Daryl replied after a moment.

“Well, I see a good guy who is surrounded by the wrong people… and.. I know I said no pressure but I really wanna kiss you now.”

Daryl licked over his dry lips and dropped his gaze. It scared the shit out of him that he actually wanted that too but on the other hand... why was he here in first place if not for giving being the person he actually was a shot.

“It’s okay. You can say no. I won’t take it personally.” Paul assured.

“Actually... I kinda... wanna say yes,” Daryl mumbled.

“What are you so scared of? It won’t be different from kissing a girl just that I am extremely talented.”

Daryl shrugged, still not looking up.

“Okay. I have no idea if am a good kisser, actually... but hey, no one ever complained.”

Daryl was still struggling and suddenly looked so vulnerable that it broke Paul’s heart a little. “Hey... close your eyes and just let go of whatever you have on your mind right now. Just know that I am not here to hurt you, hm?”

Daryl looked up shyly and nodded barely visible. Then he closed his eyes. Paul cupped his face in both hands, nudging the tip of his nose with his own playfully. Daryl suddenly relaxed and his fear faded a little. He was ready to receive his first kiss and he wanted it to be this guy and no one else. He was so close, he already felt his breath brushing his skin, still he waited for Paul to make the move.

“I honestly like you so much, Daryl,” Paul whispered against his lips before he finally kissed him in the most innocent way possible.

Daryl exhaled softly through his nose and felt his whole body relaxing. Now that the line was finally crossed, he was able to enjoy the sensation of the moment to the fullest. This morning he thought his life would go on like it was forever and nothing good would ever happen to him. Now and for the first time ever he actually felt okay with being who he was and he was okay with developing a genuine crush on the sweetest guy he had ever seen. Who was also actually kissing him in this very moment.

Paul didn’t want to scare Daryl away so he let the kiss end as sweetly as it started, meeting his eyes when he pulled away slowly. “You okay?” he asked and Daryl nodded. 

“I’m fine.”

Paul carefully touched the wounds in Darly’s face and frowned. “So that’s why you didn’t want to Skype...”

“That and because I don’t have no Skype.”

Paul smiled. “You want something to eat or drink?”

“Just water,” Daryl shrugged.

Paul got up, went to the cooking space and came back with a bottle of water and two glasses. “What are you doing for a living?” he asked while he filled the glasses.

“Nothin.”

“How do you live?”

“Hm… My brother’s drug money..”

Paul said nothing for a while and Daryl felt more and more uncomfortable until he finally got up, "Thanks for all this. I’m gonna go now.”

“What..why?” Paul asked and jumped up as well.

“Thought you’d want me to leave, now that you know...”

“Bullshit. It doesn’t change how I think about you.”

“It should.”

“It doesn’t.”

Paul took a deep breath, “So your brother is a drug dealer and that’s how you buy your food?”

Daryl nodded.

“Are you a drug dealer?”

Daryl shook his head.

“Look, this might all look like I am out of your league to you, living in this place and studying and stuff but… I haven’t accomplished anything. I’m a dreamer. I am almost 30 and still studying, living from my dad’s money because I can. You wonder why I like you? I’m wondering why you don’t hate me.”

“I said I hate you.”

“Yeah but you didn’t mean it.”

Daryl cracked a smile while Paul buried his face in his hands and let out a helpless laugh.

“Do you believe in fate?” Paul asked, looking up at Daryl again.

“Nah.. I don’t believe in shit.”

“What if we met for a reason?”

“What then?”

“Nothing… You’re probably right. We met and that’s good, isn’t it?”

“I don’t want to cause you trouble.. I shouldn’t be here,” Daryl said and Paul sighed.

“I’ll take the risk. I’m already in too deep.”

“No. I could just leave and we pretend we never met.”

“Nope. Already having a crush on you,” Paul crossed his arms in front of his chest and cocked his head.

“Look. My brother is a dick. He’s a racist Nazi-asshole and he hates people like you… like... us. If he finds out we have a thing going on it will end bad for the both of us.”

Paul sighed again and took Daryl’s hand with a sweet smile, “So we’re a having a thing?”

Daryl pulled his hand away with an angry snort and took a step back. “This ain’t a fuckin’ game. Merle is dangerous.”

“Then we just have to be very careful until we find a solution. Daryl… at least give this a chance!”

Daryl started to walk up and down nervously. Whatever his decision would be, this guy had already changed everything. Before meeting him, he had nothing. Now he suddenly had everything right in front of him. A chance to get out, a shot at love, he just had to take that chance but what was the price?

“How about we go to sleep? It’s late and a lot has happened today. The only decision I need from you now is if you want to sleep on the couch or share a bed with me,” Paul said calmly and Daryl froze, staring at him.

“Don’t worry. I just wanna cuddle.” he smiled.

“I don’t cuddle.”

“Sorry, no compromising on that one.”

Daryl huffed softly and gave up, “You won. Doesn’t make a difference now and I’m already here, so...”

Paul smiled and pulled Daryl along to the bed.

“You ain’t giving up on this, right?” Daryl asked and Paul laughed.

“Oh you already know me so well.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Don’t worry. If I’d earn money with getting myself into trouble, I would be rich by now.”

“Trouble would be my name if it wasn’t Daryl.”

“My next goal is getting myself into Daryl, by the way.”

“What?”

“What?”

There was an awkward silence between the two men for a while, then Paul changed the subject with an innocent smile. “Want to borrow some clothes for the night?”

“I’m fine,” Daryl said and kicked off his shoes, then started undressing his pants while Paul was already crawling under the blanket, watching him with curious eyes.

Stripped down to his underwear, Daryl joined his new friend and Paul dimmed the light with a remote. He pulled Daryl into his arms with no hesitation, careful not to hurt him and Daryl was melting into the embrace so naturally, he even forgot he said he doesn’t cuddle. He had never experienced any form of fondness and never expected it could feel so good.

Paul’s lips brushed the bruise on his forehead, barely touching it and Daryl closed his eyes. He nuzzled against his neck, breathing in his clean scent and sighed softly.

“Good night _bae_ ,” Daryl mumbled with a note of sarcasm in his tone and Paul chuckled.

“You know I was kidding.”

“Yeah I know. So seriously kidding.”

 

 

***

 

 


	5. Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to everyone who left kudos or comments on this!! Thank you so much guys!!! And a special thank you to oleanderedits for helping me with formatting, punctuation and stuff, you're the bestestest!!! =D <3

 

 

 

*** NOW ***

 

 

 

“Wait a second. So you met the most adorable guy ever and he was literally throwing right into your face that he wanted to have sex with you and you didn’t go for it?” Rick interrupted, a bit over emotional, and Daryl flinched.

“What? I knew that guy for what...20 minutes? I ain’t that cheap,” he bitched back and Rick snorted with laughter. “Also that’s not the point of the story. I’m getting there, just... stop interrupting.”

“Excuse me, besides the abusive stuff from your family, that’s the cutest shit I’ve ever heard and it comes from _you_. What are you expecting?”

“That you take it to your grave because if you ever tell anyone, I’m gonna kill you.”

“Are you blushing?”

“No? It’s hot?”

“No. You’re blushing. It’s dark but I can see it.”

“Just shut the fuck up, okay?”

“Okay, okay. I just… hope so much that he’s your guy. I mean... the way you talk about him... You’ve never stopped loving him, have you?”

“No. It’s not that long ago. I needed someone so desperately that day... and he was there. No judging or anything like that. Like someone from a different planet. If things had turned out differently, maybe we could have made it together. Sometimes I feel like it was yesterday when he bumped into me... but then I wake up and this is our world now. I think we both didn’t fit in that world. His paintings weren’t actually... good.”

“You bumped into each other.”

Daryl shot Rick a look and he raised his hands in defense, “Just paying attention. But hey, maybe he made it. Maybe he’s right there and you don’t even want to make sure?”

“I wish he would have made it. It’s hard to face herds of walkers, always being afraid you find a loved one between them. But then I think I don’t have to be scared of losing him anymore because I already lost him. Long before all this shit happened.”

“But what if you found him? Wouldn’t you give it a second chance?”

“Just listen to the whole story and then give me advice.”

“Okay.”

“So, that night, I spent at Paul’s apartment and got the worst wake-up call you can imagine...”

 

 

***

 

 


	6. Then

 

 

 

*** THEN ***

 

 

 

Daryl woke up to a terrible noise. First he didn’t even know where he was; his head hurt, every bone in his body was aching and this bed was definitely too comfortable to be his.

“What the hell..” he mumbled and rubbed his eyes. A delicious scent hit his nose and he blinked against the light until he had located where the terror was coming from. It was Paul, dancing in the kitchen corner with a pan in one hand and a flipper in the other which he used as microphone while he was singing along shamelessly to a song playing in the radio.

Daryl shifted under the soft blanket and decided to exploit the comfort a little longer while watching his host with a smile on his face. Damn this fucker was so annoying and yet he made him smile like a dork. Daryl never imagined what falling in love would feel like, but he assumed it could be like he felt right now.

_“Won't you press your sweet lips_  
_To mii~~~ne_  
_Won't you say you love me_  
_All of the ti~~~me"_

Paul was singing while he switched off the stove and the moment he was desperately trying to hit the high notes of the refrain, Daryl grabbed a pillow and threw it into his direction.

“Hey, you jerk! I hope you cook better than you sing!” he yelled and Paul turned to him with a bright smile on his face. 

“Good morning, sunshine! I hope you’re hungry?”

“I could eat.” Daryl said and forced himself out of bed.

Paul arranged the scrambled eggs, baked beans and bacon with two slices of toast each on both plates, “I hope you like English breakfast. I didn’t know what you usually eat so I made my favorite. You can have coffee or fresh orange juice or both.”

"I'll take all. This smells delicious. Okay, I keep you but only if you never sing again.“

“Wow. That hurt.” Paul said in a joking way and gave Daryl a peck on the cheek before he sat down at the table. “I think I’m gonna turn my life into a musical. No talking, just singing.”

“I think I was wrong about you, you’re actually the devil," Daryl pointed out and Paul laughed.

“Eat up before it gets cold. Also I liked you better when you weren’t so chatty.”

“Back in the days, when we just met.. Good ol’ times.”

Both men exchanged a smile and Daryl tried his breakfast.

“Damn this is good stuff,” he said. “If you wanna try convince me to stay, it could work.”

“So, just me is not enough?”

“I think I like the package,” Daryl replied with his mouth full, now focusing on the delicious food.

Paul totally forgot to eat while he was focused on Daryl, watching him enjoying his eggs and beans and though he still looked like hell, he seemed much less tense, compared to yesterday. Out of an impulse, he stood up and settled down on Daryl’s lap, arms wrapped around his neck.

“Hey, I’m trying to eat.” Daryl complained but he wasn’t really mad, especially not after Paul leaned in to kiss him. Slowly gaining confidence that this guy really liked him, this time Daryl kissed him back. Paul was still leading him, but it was easy for Daryl to adjust. His whole life he had suppressed the need to give his heart what it desired. There also hadn’t really been a chance because he wasn’t looking for options but doing this now made him feel free and he never wanted to lose this feeling again. He only pulled back to catch a breath, his hands wandering along Paul’s thighs while the other was caressing his neck with gentle bites and let his fingers run though his short hair over and over.

“Daryl… I know this might sound rushed but… I think I’m falling in love with you and I really want this to work. Please don’t go and pretend we never met,” Paul asked quietly.

“We'll figure something out,” Daryl promised and wrapped his arms around Paul’s small body, burying his face in the crook of his neck.

“Really?”

“Yeah. I just... I don’t want to drag you into my world.”

“You won’t. I'll drag you into mine. This is my last year. When I finished studying, we can leave this place. Go far away from your family and make sure they never control your life again.”

“When we meet... we have to be careful. If you see me in town, don’t greet me. Don’t ever come to my home. If you don’t hear from me for a while, don’t try to find out why. Wait until I contact you. Promise?”

“Promise.”

“I have to go now. If my brother comes home finds his bike missing, he’ll freak out.”

“I don’t wanna let you go.”

“I ain’t be gone forever.”

“You’ll come back to me?”

“Yes, now stop being a whiny bitch.”

Paul replied with another kiss, trying to swallow down his concerns about letting Daryl go back to his abusive home. If both men had known that this would be the last moment they shared, maybe Daryl would have said something nicer. Maybe Paul kissed him a little bit longer.

“Only if you finish your breakfast before you leave,” Paul said and switched back to his own seat.

“You bet I finish this. You don’t eat yours?”

“Wanna have it? I’m not really hungry.”

“Hell yes,” Daryl said and pulled the plate over.

Paul took a sip from his coffee and sighed.

“Stop that.”

“What?”

“That face.”

“Sorry that I am upset knowing that my boyfriend goes back to hell while he could just stay here and be safe.”

“I’ll be fine. I’m living in that hell long enough. It won’t be different from any day in my life so far just that I have something nice to think of now.”

Paul’s face suddenly lit up and Daryl raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

“I called you my boyfriend and you didn’t complain.”

“Why would I complain?”

The smile on Paul’s face became wider and he pulled the plate back.

“Hey!”

“Changed my mind, I’m hungry now.”

“Okay, I'm complaining now.”

“Sorry~”

“Jerk.” Daryl smiled and shook his head before he got up to get dressed while Paul enjoyed his reclaimed breakfast in a much better mood. “Can I leave you alone now or will you cry when I’m gone.”

“When you’re gooone the pieces of my heart are missing youu~~” Paul started to sing and Daryl rolled his eyes.

“That’s it. I’m out. Don’t worry ‘bout me, I call ya,” he said and tousled Paul’s hair when he walked by.

He was already at the door when Paul called, “Okay. Bye, boyfriend,” without looking at him.

Daryl looked back, a smile flashing over his lips when his so called boyfriend turned to him and waved with a cute smile. He answered with a short nod before he finally left the apartment. He had never been the type for cheesy good-byes and he got the feeling that if he wouldn’t leave now, he might have stayed forever.

 

 

***

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I assume everyone knows the song but if not, here it is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpfpbLEA1ZE and I am not even sorry for choosing this one :'D  
> ..The other is Avril Lavigne, "When you're gone"


	7. Now

 

 

 

*** NOW *** 

 

 

 

Jesus opened his eyes the moment he was alone. He hadn’t been unconscious for a second, freed himself from the bonds in two seconds and grabbed the note, reading it while he ate the cookie that had been waiting next to it. He was glad that this Rick seemed to be a good person, still it felt unreal that he had actually found Daryl. Not that he had doubted for a moment that Daryl was still alive. 

He wasn’t sure if he had recognized him or not but that gave him the time to sort his feelings and clear his mind. This wasn’t a world for heart-decisions anymore and it changed people… it had changed him.

Jesus chugged the water and waited a while until he got up, looking for a way to escape the room and chose the window. Who knew his height would be of advantage some day. He escaped the room silently like a cat and circled the house, stopping when he heard voices and peeked around the corner, seeing Daryl and Rick sitting on the porch. His heart was beating faster at the sight of his lost love and ached a bit seeing him being close to someone else.

“No, you can’t tell me that was the last time you saw each other,” Rick said and sounded really upset.

“It was. Kinda,” Daryl replied.

“But you’d just met. You seemed so happy...”

“I was happy. Maybe for the first time in my life. He was the first who liked me just the way I was.”

Jesus took a deep breath and was about to expose himself when Daryl said:

“He was the only one who ever accepted me just like that. Well... before I met you.”

Hearing that, he leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes with a sad smile on his face. Jesus sighed and decided to check out the place while Daryl was keeping Rick busy with their story. He left as quietly as he came, trying not to think so much about the possibility that Daryl belonged to someone else now, telling his new partner about their shared history so it wouldn’t be so awkward later.

“You guys never made me feel like shit, did I ever thank you for that?” Daryl continued and Rick smiled.

“No need to. You’re my brother and that’s how you should treat family.”

Daryl cracked a smile.

“Now tell me how it ended and then go in there, make a new start.”

“Tell me again after you heard what happened.”

“I will.”

“You won’t.”

“I will do everything for the chance to walk by your place by accident and hear you cry 'Oh yes, oh _Jesus._ '”

Daryl poked Rick hard for that one, “That ain’t gonna happen. Calling that asshole _Jesus..._ ” he spat and Rick poked him back gently.

“Come on. You have to admit this is funny.”

“Yeah, I can’t stop laughing. Anyway, I hoped to get back home before Merle but...”

 

 

***

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for writing Rick like a 13 year old girl but since the scene in the car I have the head canon that Rick is a die-hard desus shipper and I just can't resist :'D


	8. Then

 

 

 

***THEN***

 

 

 

Daryl hoped to be back before his brother came home to avoid questions, but he wasn’t that lucky. Merle was already waiting in the door frame when he drove up the road to their house, looking none too happy.

Daryl parked his brother’s motorcycle, trying to act as normal as possible.

“Where’ve you been?” Merle yelled.

“Spent the night at the hospital. Dad freaked out yesterday. Got nothin’ else to get there,” Daryl lied and his brother cocked his head. 

“Hospital, huh? Only pussies go to a hospital. Are you a pussy now? What’s that?” he asked and grabbed Daryl’s wrist.

“Nothin’?” Daryl replied and wanted to pull his hand back but Merle’s grip was painfully strong.

“You hooked up with a little nurse or somethin’?” Merle’s tone was suspicious and curious at the same time.

“No...”

“Will you call her?”

“No...”

“You should, you know. There are rumors about you.”

“Like I give a shit about rumors,” Daryl said and freed his arm from Merle’s grip to walk straight to the sink in the kitchen, rubbing Paul’s number off his skin.

“Hey, bro. I’m not gonna pay your extra service.”

Daryl rubbed harder, thinking about an excuse for going to the hospital without health insurance. “No need to. I went there to get some painkillers, nurse saw me and patched me up for free.”

“Lucky you.” Merle said but seemed to buy it.

“What’s with him?” Daryl asked and pointed to the couch.

“Woke up once, pissed in the corner and crashed out again.”

“No surprise this place stinks like shit,” Daryl said while walking to their room and slammed the door. Now, with having an actual option for a better life ahead, he even hated this place more than ever. Maybe he should just leave now, hide at Paul’s place until they were able to go live somewhere else... 

For some reason he had absolutely no doubts that his new friend had been honest to him with every word he said. He couldn’t explain it and had no idea why Paul wanted him but he believed him. He seemed so happy when Daryl agreed to be his boyfriend and had absolutely no reason to fake that so he just embraced this gift he got for whatever reason. Daryl got himself a boyfriend who was an annoying little prick he knew for less than a day and yet he already knew he didn’t want to be with anyone else.

Hearing Merle making noise in the kitchen, he looked for the cable to recharge his phone and dropped himself on the mattress, switching it on after a few minutes. He grabbed a cigarette and opened the new message he got with a slight idea from whom it could be. Paul had sent him a picture he must have taken while Daryl was asleep, showing them both snuggled up in bed, with eyes closed and Paul with a smile on his lips.

Daryl read the text below with his heart beating faster.

_-Sorry, couldn’t resist. We both look so cute together :)_

He snorted and typed back:

_-You do._

The reply came fast.

_-We both. Deal with it._

Daryl sighed and finished his cigarette without haste; then he typed:

_-I was thinking..._

_-Oh no. You’re breaking up with me?_

_-No. Next time Merle’s gone for a few days, I grab my stuff and leave this shit-hole. I might need a place to hide and heard you need someone to cuddle with anyway?_

Daryl was nervous, sending this, but did it anyway.

_-I just screamed, did you hear me?_

Daryl suppressed a laugh.

_-No. But does that mean you don’t mind?_

_-Best news of today. Can’t wait to have you here._

_-Same. But don’t text me anymore, Merle is here. Wait for my message._

Paul wasn’t replying to that one anymore and Daryl was glad that he understood.

From that day on, they only exchanged a few messages each day but it was enough to give Daryl energy. All he had to do now was being patient and wait for the right moment to make his move. Trying not to cause any trouble until then, he kept his head low but his hopes high.

***

“I’m out. Urgent business. Be gone for a while,” Merle announced one day and with that, he jumped on his motorcycle and left.

With their dad too drunk to even move, Daryl wanted to take the chance and pull up stakes. He was secretly preparing a bag for a while now, with some clothes in it, ready to grab. He had no personal belongings anyway so with about 25 minutes until the next and last bus for the day and a good 20 minutes walk to the bus station, he decided to send Paul a text to make sure he was at home.

Daryl frowned when he opened his texts because there were new ones, but he had no notification on the screen.

_-hi bae iwanna meetcha u free?_

Daryl hadn’t called Paul by that stupid nickname again since that one time. Also he always tried to avoid typos.

_-When and where? =)_

Paul hasn’t seemed to notice and the next message from him was the meeting place; a parking lot from a supermarket that was closed by now.

_-I’ll be there~_

Daryl checked the time and it was about 30 minutes until the “date” was supposed to happen and slowly he realized what was going on.

“Merle...” he cursed and grabbed the bag with a change of plans, rushing to his dad’s trash car and headed to town. Thoughts were whirling around in his head, trying to make sense and in the end he came to the conclusion that Merle must have taken his phone in a moment he carelessly left it out of sight and found the texts and pictures and was now luring Paul into a trap to confront him.

Daryl had one hand at the wheel and typed a text with the other to warn his boyfriend, telling him the date is canceled, before he tossed the phone on the backseat and hit the gas pedal. With the car he would need about 40 minutes to the supermarket but Merle was faster on his bike so all he could hope for now was that Paul got his text in time. Usually he always read his messages right away, still Daryl had a hard time not panicking and focused on his goal to get there in the first place.

All his hopes died the moment he turned into the parking lot and spotted his brother right away, yelling and beating the shit out of someone who couldn’t be anyone else but Paul. Merle was in such a rage that he didn’t even notice his brother coming.

“You wanna fuck my little brother’s worthless ass?? Suck his dick with your filthy mouth, huh?” he yelled and kicked his victim in the face before he threw himself on the already lifeless body and kept punching him over and over.

“Merle!” Daryl yelled furiously, “Merle stop, you’re fuckin’ killing him!”

He started dragging at his brother, trying to get him off of his friend and finally he got his attention.

“Oh, look who’s here for the party, it’s Darylina,” Merle said out of breath and stood up. His hands were covered with Paul’s blood and Daryl was about to vomit.

“You really going for this? Leaving your family for a fag?” he pushed Daryl, who stumbled a few steps backwards.

“Leave him alone, he ain’t done anything.”

“No? You think he’s serious with you? That little son of a bitch with his neat clothes and his pretty hair, you really think he cares about you?”

“You know nothing about him! Or me! And you can’t force me to stay in that hell you call home forever.”

Merle spat in his brother’s face, “Have fun being that cock sucker`s little bitch but don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“I ain’t nobody’s bitch!”

“You’ll come back to me. ‘Cause I’m the only one who will ever take care of you, baby brother.” Merle said with a sardonic smile and turned around to walk away.

“You never took care of me,” Daryl yelled, staggering to Paul and dropped down on his knees next to him, panting heavily.

Daryl’s body started trembling at the sight of his friend and for a while he didn’t even dare to touch him. Tears were running down his cheeks and he was barely able to breathe. Just when he realized Paul wasn’t waking up on his own, he picked him up with care and carried him to the car, placing him on the co driver’s seat.

“You’ll be okay...” he mumbled absentmindedly and rushed to the next hospital without looking at Paul anymore. Daryl knew he would break the moment he saw his damaged face again and he had to stay in control of the situation now. He couldn’t even remember how he got inside the hospital until a female voice woke him up from his shock when he was standing in the middle of the foyer with Paul in his arms.

He looked at the nurse and babbled: “Help... he needs help...”

“What happened?” she asked after she had called for a stretcher and ordered Daryl to put the patient down.

“We had an appointment. When I showed up I found him like this. He must have gotten into a fight or something...”

“I see. Would you mind waiting here for a while for a few more questions? I’ll be back soon.”

“Sure,” Daryl agreed and watched how Paul got carted away.

After about an hour, the nurse came back and asked for the patients name.

“It’s Paul Monroe. He will be okay, right?” Daryl asked, “Can I see him?”

“Are you family?” she wanted to know and it was obvious that she doubted it by the way Daryl looked compared to Paul.

“He’s my partner.”

“As in you work together?”

“As in he’s my boyfriend,” Daryl confessed quietly. “Please I have nowhere to go. I planned to move in with him today and... I need to make sure he’s alright.”

“I can only give information to relatives,” the nurse started and Daryl searched his phone for the picture Paul had sent him and showed it to her.

“I ain’t making shit up. We just got together, I can’t call his family ‘cause I don’t know them yet. Please.”

The nurse sighed and nodded, understanding how desperate Daryl was. “Your friend isn’t actually in a critical condition, but his injuries are serious and he’s in surgery now. He will be put in an artificial coma for a couple of days, which is not unusual for his condition. I suggest you have a coffee and I will call you as soon as you can see him. Just know that he is in the best hands,” she smiled.

***

A few hours later, Daryl was sitting by the bed Paul was resting in. He felt empty, not knowing if he should be sad or angry or all at once. This was all his fault, because he was so stupid to leave all the texts and pictures on his phone. He had considered deleting it all but he needed something to hold on to, a proof that this was all happening for real and except for this one time, he always had his phone with him.

Worst of all, he knew this wasn’t it. Merle wouldn’t just leave it at that, letting him live a happy life with a guy. 

But for now, Paul’s recovery was most important and he wouldn’t leave his side for one second and he wasn’t until three days later, when he suddenly received a call.

***

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was thinking a lot about Daryl hallucinating to see Merle in season 2 recently and think that his subconscious mind recalled stuff his brother actually said to him in the past so I made parts of the conflict similar to that one because I was thinking of in what kind of context Merle could have said ugly things like that in s2 to Daryl..


	9. Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone who made it until here and welcome to the last chapter =)  
> Prepare yourselves, I tend to make things cheesy at some points, I hope it is not too bad and again sorry for the way I write Rick but again, this is filled with head canon and just for fun so I hope you have fun with it =D
> 
> While I was writing this story I found a desus video that I thought would be the perfect ending song for this one so i will add the link in the ending notes and I highly recommend watching it because it is awesome, kudos to the maker!! =D 
> 
> I'm also adding a fanart that I didn't make for this story but I thought it would fit =)
> 
> Now hopefully enjoy reading and my extra special thanks again to oleanderedits who was looking over all my chapters, helping me with formatting and language mistakes! You are awesome <3

 

 

 

*** NOW *** 

 

 

 

Daryl took a deep breath before he continued while Rick was listening quietly, with a concerned frown between his eyebrows. “It was Merle… He called me one day before they planned to get Paul out of coma, telling me our dad didn’t wake up that day. He wanted to leave that place and asked me to come with him. I kinda knew he wouldn’t leave without me and he would keep going until my relationship with Paul would break. Leaving with Merle, I had the chance to keep Paul safe, keep my brother far away from him.”

“So you left him because you wanted to protect him. That... is breaking my heart, but no reason to be ashamed,” Rick said. “No reason to not face him.”

“No you don’t get it. I left him a shitty note that said I was sorry and that he should forget about me. He got hurt because of me and I just left him and tossed my phone so he couldn’t reach me anymore,” Daryl said angrily and Rick sighed.

“You didn’t _just_ leave him. You made a decision that wasn’t easy and you thought it was the for the best. He didn’t get hurt because of _you_ but because your brother was an asshole.”

“But I feel like a coward. Merle never mentioned that incident ever again, pretending it never happened. Now I think I should’ve stayed with Paul. He deserved so much better.”

“So did you and you still do. You don’t really have doubts that it is him, right?” Rick asked and Daryl shook his head.

“Not really. It’s just so hard to believe. I mean... he almost knocked us both out.”

“Yeah, no. He kicked me in the guts while he gently shoved _you_ out of the way.”

“He threw me against the truck.”

“Pretty bad-ass boyfriend you have there.”

“Hmh...” Daryl smiled a little.

“You think we can trust him?”

“Who knows what he’s been through… “ Daryl said and was lost in thoughts for a while, then he asked, “You know what I’m scared of?”

Rick laid a hand on his shoulder, “I’m sure he doesn’t hate you because you left him. He seems to be a decent guy, I’m sure he understood what you did. Also there’s no way he didn’t recognize you and I think he didn’t only follow us because of the truck but also because he didn’t want to lose track of you again.”

“You think?”

“You might not believe it but you’re a good catch. He probably was as overwhelmed as you were, not knowing how to handle the situation right... It’s a little miracle that you found each other again.”

“A bit too much miracle if you ask me...”

“So, are you going to talk to him now?”

“I need a moment… On my own,” he said and Rick nodded.

“I understand. Take your time, it’s not like he’s going anywhere tonight, right?”

“Right.”

With that said, Rick left Daryl alone with his thoughts. It was the first time he had ever told someone the story about him and the guy he fell in love with. Maybe because even for him it felt unreal that it actually happened like that. Maybe because he felt stupid for loving someone, he barely knew, so much.  
Daryl had lost his heart to the brightest eyes, the cutest smile and the feeling of being loved. Paul had made him feel like he was worth something; with him he never felt _wrong._ He wasn’t sure if he had left him only to protect him. Maybe he hadn’t been ready to let himself be loved by someone who was way out of his league…

Daryl didn’t know if he would ever be ready for that, but this time he would let Paul decide. If he still wanted him then he wouldn’t run from it, not again. Sharing the story with Rick showed him how much he still wanted to have back what his brother had destroyed. He was free to be his own person now, he knew no one would judge him for being with a guy, but would Paul give him a second chance?

Later that night, while Daryl was still hesitating whether to go in or not, Jesus had finished scouting the area and was sneaking around Rick’s house. He just had to talk to him first, find out if he was with Daryl now and if not, see if he still had a chance to get him back. Because if he knew one thing for sure, it was that he wanted Daryl and he would fight for him. Luckily his main concern got drowned the moment he entered Rick’s bedroom and found him naked with a woman, both deep asleep. Still, he needed to ask him about Daryl and shamelessly decided to wake him up.

“Rick. Rick, wake up.”

Both Rick and the woman jumped out of bed, grabbing their weapons and pointing them at him in perfect sync.

Jesus raised his arms to show that he wasn’t a threat and smiled, “We should talk.”

“How the hell did you get out?” Rick asked, still a bit in the process of waking up.

“Window? I need to know: are you cheating on Daryl? Because if you are I'm going to go get him back now.”

“What?” Michonne asked and looked at Rick who lowered his gun, the corners of his mouth twitching.

“Long story. I tell you later,” he said and looked back at Jesus, “Would you mind getting out so we can get dressed? Then we’ll talk.”

Jesus nodded and left the room. In the hallway, a picture on the wall caught his attention. He took it off the wall, sat down on the stairs and took a closer look at it, sentimentally remembering a time when he was spending his days drawing pictures and thought that was all that mattered. Until the day he met a guy named Daryl, who turned his whole world upside down. He didn’t get the chance to walk down memory lane any further, feeling a gun being pointed at him once more.

“What the hell are you doing in our house?” the boy who was holding the gun asked and Jesus sighed: “I’m sitting on the steps, looking at this painting, waiting for your mom and dad to get dressed.” 

The boy tilted his head and frowned.

“Hi, I’m Jesus,” the intruder introduced himself and before the boy was able to react, Rick and his girlfriend came out of the bedroom, at least half dressed.

“Carl...hey... uhm...” Rick started but he got no chance to explain the situation because Daryl came running up the stairs, followed by a bunch of other people and again, all guns were on Jesus.

Jesus didn’t care what was happening around him, his eyes were on Daryl who was holding his gun tight, staring at him intensely. It made him smile.

“It’s okay,” Michonne said and everyone lowered their guns except Daryl, who seemed to be frozen.

“I think someone needs to talk,” Rick added and shooed everyone out but not without looking back at the two men with a smile before he left them alone.

“I always knew you would make it,” Jesus said, still smiling and Daryl lowered his gun slowly, his features softening. Jesus put the painting aside and stood up, walked down the stairs and stopped in front of Daryl who looked up to him with tears in his eyes.

“Hi,” Jesus said softly.

Daryl tilted forwards, letting his head drop against his shoulder and closed his eyes. Jesus wrapped his arms around his neck and buried his face in his tousled hair, his own eyes squeezed shut. They remained like that for a long while until Daryl dropped the gun and pulled Jesus into a tight embrace.

This was real.

Though Jesus wasn’t able to fight back his tears either, he tightened his embrace when he felt Daryl’s body starting to tremble, giving him the strength to keep standing on his feet.

After what felt like an eternity, Daryl pulled back just a little to look at his friend again who cupped his face in his hands and wiped his tears away with this thumbs.

“Please, say something...” Jesus whispered and Daryl dropped his gaze, tugging at his leather coat.

“From all people you could’ve become, it had to be Jesus?” he asked and looked up again. “I hate you so much.”

Jesus choked back a laugh, “You have to admit, I look hot.”

“Hmh… Not much less ridiculous than you looked before.”

“And still you want me so much,” Jesus teased and a little smile flashed over Daryl’s lips.

“I do,” he confessed, “You take me back?”

Jesus huffed softly and caressed Daryl’s cheek, “I never stopped looking for you, you know? Not in the last world, not in this.“

“I shouldn’t have left you.”

“That doesn’t matter now, “ Jesus said and sat down, waiting for Daryl to sit next to him. “Do you remember when I said what if we met for a reason?”

“I remember everything you said,” Daryl mumbled and Jesus poked him gently with his shoulder.

“Stop that.”

“What?”

“That face.”

“Don’t steal my lines,” Daryl complained but with a little smile.

“You know… I think everything had to happen exactly like it happened or I wouldn’t have survived a single day in this world.”

“How’s that?”

“When I woke up in the hospital and read your note, I admit, I was heartbroken… I got home and cried for days though I knew you hadn’t left because you didn’t want to be with me... but for different reasons. One day I woke up and realized that you left because I was weak.”

“Bullshit,” Daryl interrupted, “I didn’t want Merle to hurt you again.”

“What if I had been able to handle your brother on my own?”

“Then he might have called some friends, wait for the right moment, and stab you in the back.”

“That’s why I’m saying it is good how it happened because no matter what you say now, back then I was determined to change my life. I started with a self-defense class and later got obsessed with martial arts just to become someone you would never have to worry about ever again.”

“What about your studies?”

“Dropped out. Let’s be honest, I was a shitty artist.”

“True.”

“You knew and didn’t tell me?”

“Didn’t matter,” Daryl shrugged, “Everything about you sucked.”

Jesus looked at Daryl for a long time, then he leaned in to steal a kiss. “I love you too,” he said with a sweet smile and Daryl looked away shyly, not saying anything and his reaction made Jesus love him even more.

“So that’s how you became a ninja-warrior?” he asked and Jesus laughed.

“Call me what you like, I’m glad I’m able to survive on my own in this world. I have a place to live but most of the time I am out alone, looking for needful things and other groups, always hoping to find you and here you are.”

“Here I am… Why didn’t you say anything when you found me?”

“I thought you and Rick..”

“No. You didn’t think we...”

“Yes I did. Well... I thought it could be possible. You two seemed so close.”

“We are. He’s the brother I never had.”

“What happened to Merle?”

“Died.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

“He still was your brother.”

“Whatever. He’s gone. What made you so sure I would make it?”

“You’re a survivor. You survived your own hell before this started, that’s how I knew.”

Daryl chewed on his lower lip for a while, staring at his hands. “You wanna survive this one with me?”

Jesus leaned his head against his shoulder and closed his eyes, “I do.”

Daryl pushed him back playfully and smiled, “Come on. Let’s get some sleep. I’m sure Rick wants his house back.”

Jesus nodded and followed Daryl. The moment they got near the door, they heard footsteps and when they walked outside, everyone was awkwardly standing around, pretending to do anything but eavesdropping.

Daryl looked at Rick who already had a stupid grin on his face and said, “Shut up. We talk tomorrow.”

With that said he dragged Jesus along, giving no one the chance to ask questions or comment on the matter. Rick looked after them, the smile on his face widening when he saw Daryl wrapping an arm around his boyfriend’s waist to pull him closer and Jesus doing the same, while they walked away.

“I can’t believe we fought over a stupid truck,” Daryl said when they were far enough away from the others.

“I can’t believe you actually punched me in the face,” Jesus replied.

“Yeah. Finally I can strike _that_ off my list.”

“Rude!”

“You got my last cookie.”

“Okay, forgiven.”

There was a moment of silence between them before Daryl said, “That won’t happen again, I hope you know that. I didn’t mean to...”

“Just, forget about it. It was nothing.”

“Hmh...”

They arrived at Daryl’s place and Jesus looked around. As expected, there was not much to look at.

“I am really happy to see you at a good place, surrounded by good people,” he said while he was pulling off his gloves.

Daryl kicked off his shoes and watched Jesus taking off his coat, hanging it over a chair, then he took off his beanie and vest, leaving shirt, bandana, pants and belts on.

“Don’t worry,” Jesus said after noticing his boyfriend’s nervous looks, “I just want to cuddle. ...For now.” he winked and Daryl relaxed a bit.

“You sure?”

“I am. There’s no need to rush things now. Your pace,” he assured with a smile and grabbed Daryl’s wrist, pulling him to the bed.

They both nestled down in each others arms and Jesus took a deep breath before he closed his eyes and asked: “Why didn’t you say anything when you saw me?”

“I thought 'this can’t be real'. Then you said your name was Paul Rovia and I thought I was just seeing ghosts...”

“That’s my real name. I picked Monroe as artist name because I thought it sounded better,” Jesus snorted with laughter because now it seemed so pointless. “Our time together was so short, I haven’t even told you my real name. I don’t even know _your_ last name.”

“Dixon,” Daryl said quietly, staring at the ceiling.

“Hi Daryl Dixon,” Jesus said and snuggled up closer. “Look what we accomplished.”

“Such as?”

“We’re still alive and we have pretty hair.” he pointed out and Daryl snorted.

“I ain’t calling you Jesus, though,” he clarified, “but I like that beard.”

“Good because I plan to keep it.”

“Good.”

“Daryl?”

“Hm?”

“Just for tonight... can we pretend we aren’t in this world?”

“Nah...”

Jesus looked up and their eyes met.

“I was nothing back then. Maybe I fit better in this world. Maybe you do, too.”

“For what it’s worth... You were the one I fell in love with.”

“Thought I still am?”

Jesus smiled and breathed a kiss on his lips, “You are. That will never change.”

“Then let’s try make the best of this one. Now that you’re here.”

“Sounds good,” Jesus agreed and they shared another kiss, this time much more aware that this was all real, that they really found each other and that they were still feeling the same.

“We found love in a hopeless place...” Jesus started singing against Daryl’s lips, who grabbed a pillow to press it on his significant other’s face and rolled around.

“Good night.”

“Okay, okay. No singing anymore..” Jesus surrendered and snuggled against Daryl’s back, arms wrapped around him tightly. “Good night, _bae_ ,” he teased and Daryl closed his eyes with a smile.

***

The next morning, the reunited lovers woke up to someone clearing his throat. Daryl blinked against the uncomfortable light and saw Rick standing in the middle of the room, arms crossed in front of his chest.

“What the,” Daryl growled while Jesus shifted next to him, sat up and rubbed his eyes.

“Why are you two not naked for Christ’s sake?” Rick asked reproachfully and Jesus grinned tiredly.

“Nice pun,” he said and Rick’s face lit up a bit.

“Thanks, I thought about it all morning.”

Daryl rolled around with a growl, burying his face in his pillow and mumbled, “Get the hell outta here.”

“I just wanted to let you know that everyone is waiting to hear what _Jesus_ wants to tell us,” Rick explained, “But take your time.” He smiled and left the two alone.

Daryl forced himself up and looked at Jesus, “You ready to meet my people?”

“Are you ready to introduce me as your boyfriend?” Jesus asked in return and Daryl thought about it for a moment, then he nodded with a crooked smile.

“I am.”

 

 

***The End?***

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlN0bFEyp5k&t=25s


End file.
